Yves Cuilleron : Viognier Les Vignes d'a Cote 2018

Aromatic and Classic Northern Rhone White Wine

Winemaking has been in Yves Cuilleron’s family for three generations on both sides of his family. In 1920 Yves’ grandfather, Claude Cuilleron, founded Cave Cuilleron and in 1947 began selling wine under the Cuilleron label. By 1987, Yves took over the business after his uncle retired. In 1992, he built a new winery that stands today in Verlieu, a section of Chavanay, in the Northern Rhone where his mother is from. Yves initially planned to work as a mechanic instead of a vigneron, however during his military service in Alsace he had a change of heart. A fusion of wine and food in this region brought him back to his farming and winemaking roots.

Since his start at the winery, Yves has poured his passion and determination to ensure his winemaking is top quality from viticulture to bottling, creating unique and beautiful wines. Yves Cuilleron grows the classic Rhone varieties: Syrah and Grenache for red wines along with Viognier, Roussane and Marsanne for white wines. Cave Cuilleron has 75 hectares of vines mostly in Chavanay near the winery, along with plots spread out across the region. Over time, Yves expanded his reach to plots in historic areas of the Rhone Valley including eight hectares in Cote Rotie, 12 in Condrieu, 27 in Saint-Joseph, four in Crozes Hermitage and 1.5 hectares in Cornas among others. A large majority of Yves Cuilleron’s vines are set on terraces in granite, alluvium or clay rich soils, which create a flinty undertone and a distinct sense of place. Each plot is vinified separately to encourage the terroir and full expression to shine through in the wine.

The Yves Cuilleron Viognier Les Vignes d'a Cote 2018 is immensely aromatic with floral, fruity and vegetal notes. The wine is dry, smooth and round on the palate. The Viognier grapes are hand picked from granite rich plots in Chavanay expressing a mineral undertone and acidic punch in the wine. The wine is aged for six months in both stainless steel tanks and small barrels before bottling to create a layered, and medium bodied wine. Enjoy a dry palate with flavors of rose, peach, mango, tangerine and honeysuckle.